What Does the Discovery Process Consist of?

Handling a civil suit without the help of a lawyer can be risky and result in more complications to your situation. If you are a business owner who is being threatened by a lawsuit or other issue, you want to keep your company and rights protected. Business law is complex and consists of a lot of overlap between state and federal laws. A seasoned business attorney like one from the Law Office of Daniel J. Wright can inform you of your rights during a civil dispute. One of the most important parts of litigation that clients should understand is the discovery process, which is explained below. 

Once a civil case is initiated and a complaint has been submitted to the courts, a summons is then issued to the defendant. Following these steps, the case goes into the discovery phase, which consists of both parties using their tools and resources for evidence collection and production of documents relevant to the argument. During this phase, the parties exchange information about the witnesses and evidence they intend to present. This prevents a party from having a significant advantage over the other once a trial begins. The discovery phase can be broken down into the following parts:

Interrogatories

Interrogatories are a helpful tool used in discovery that allows a party to assemble basic information about a case. The litigant sends a list of questions to the opposing party and asks them to answer them under oath. The questions must only be written in a way that establishes the facts of the case. 

Request for Production of Documents

The litigant asks the other party to produce the documents they plan to show in the trial. If the party does not share which documents they plan to include, the court might object to the undisclosed documents being used as evidence.

Request for Admissions

A request for admissions is less common, but is used to force a party to directly confirm or deny if their statements are true under oath. It involves a set of statements that must be answered by the defendant. 

Deposition

The methods listed above are just some ways parties can compile information in a civil case, and there are other forms of discovery a party may prefer to use. The discovery process can take months, depending on the factors of the case. If you have additional questions regarding discovery, schedule an appointment with a lawyer who can speak more about how discovery works.